Across the Universe
by thelittlepandagirl
Summary: Four: He wishes he didn't meet her at all. Edge of Tomorrow AU. (Some R x A drabbles for the world. Mostly based on movies.)
1. Castaway

**based on:** Castaway

 **notes:** Because that last scene between Chuck and Kelly broke my heart.

 **disclaimer:** I own nothing.

* * *

Six years. That was a long time to be gone. His face is unreadable, blue eyes unfocused. Ryoga hands him a drink.

"Look, Ranma, everyone was devastated when they heard about the accident," Ryoga sighs. "Most especially...We spent a year looking for you."

"I know," Ranma replies simply. He runs a hand over his face and pulls on his pigtail. He got his hair trimmed and it is now nice and clean.

"We held...a funeral for you. It was weird. We didn't have a body so we put stuff that reminded us of you in the casket. It was Nabiki's idea."

"I heard...she's with someone else now."

Ryoga coughs uncomfortably. Of course Ranma will want to talk about this. "Married two years ago."

Ranma smiles, but it's bittersweet. "At least she isn't unhappy anymore."

Ryoga looks at his (once) bestfriend. "I'm sure she'll be happy to see you."

* * *

Ranma stands in the middle of the dojo, eyes tracing the scars caused by him many, many years ago. It looks exactly the same, save for the name plates of the new students hanging on the north wall. There's a pitter patter of footsteps behind him.

"The tea's ready."

Akane. Her hair is longer now but she looks exactly the same. Still as beautiful as ever.

"Lead the way, milady."

She rolls her eyes at him. "Dummy. I'm sure you still know where the dining room is." She hasn't changed at all. They walk through the house and Ranma gets a glimpse of how life in the Tendo household currently is. There's a baby bottle by the phone, a cleaning rag by the corner - Akane must have been cleaning before he arrived - and some framed photos hanging on every other wall.

Akane with her sisters on one of her birthdays. Akane with her best friend Sayuri on graduation day. Akane with her husband on her wedding day.

"So, Daisuke, huh," Ranma chuckles. He sits by the kotatsu table and he doesn't miss the baby carrier beside him.

"Hmm?" Akane brings in her daughter and places her in the carrier beside Ranma. "Be good to Uncle Ranma while mama gets him tea," she tells the child, popping a pacifier in her mouth.

Ranma is mesmerized. "You're such a mom."

"If the shoe fits," Akane replies absently and heads towards the kitchen. He stares back at the baby. She sucks on her pacifier, looking at him with big brown eyes. She looks just like Akane.

Akane comes back to the dining room, bringing a tray tea and mochi. Ranma automatically stands to help her. They set the table together and lapse in comfortable silence. A cup of tea later, and Akane starts talking.

"After you were officially declared...dead, I went away for awhile. Some camping here and there, sports all over the place. I gave up martial arts for a bit," she confesses, looking at Ranma with sad eyes. "I turned into an adrenaline junkie of sorts, engaging in extreme sports."

"That ain't a lot different from martial arts," he remarks. Akane gives him a small smile.

"Yeah but it's a different feeling, you know? Anyway, I joined this snowboarding competition and got a little too cocky. The wind's in my hair and I'm climbing up, up, up, laughing since I was in the lead. Next thing I know my face is full of snow and my leg was on fire. Broken in two places."

"Still a clumsy tomboy, eh?"

"There wasn't a Ranma to rescue the clumsy tomboy." That shuts him up. She continues after a while, "I was taken to the hospital. Apparently Daisuke was temporarily assigned in that hospital - he was studying to be a doctor then. He became part of the team who fixed me up."

Akane has a faraway look on her face as she scoots towards her daughter to lightly ruffle her hair. "And I guess one thing led to another and here we are. Kind of hard to believe."

Her daughter squeals and throws her pacifier on the table. "She's a handful."

Ranma fingers the pacifier. "She probably inherited a violent streak from her ma."

"Hopefully she won't be uncute," Akane retorts and they both laugh. She smiles at him, and he's taken back to the first day they met. Sixteen and so, so young. He doesn't want to dwell on the past so he looks somewhere else.

"You have my stuff ready?"

Akane blinks at him and the joy slowly drains out of her face. "Yeah, the boxes are in the guest room upstairs…"

* * *

"Thanks for holding on to this for me," he says as places the last of the boxes in the trunk of his rented car.

"You know I couldn't..." Akane leaves the sentence hanging, and slightly shakes her head. Her hands are clasped demurely in front of her. "I should go back, check up on Rinko's nap."

"Yeah...yeah go." Ranma places his hands in his pockets and lightly swings on his heels. There's an unspoken distance between them. After all, six years is a long time.

She squeezes his arm. "Feel free to drop by, okay?" She smiles at him again, but it's a sad one. He thinks her eyes are a bit wet.

She walks back to the dojo. He walks to the driver's side of the car.

He feels her hesitation -

"Ranma!"

Akane runs back and throws her arms around his neck in a desperate hold. "I always knew you were alive, I knew it. Everybody said I had to let you go," she sobs. "I love you, Ranma. You're the love of my life."

They both know they won't be able to do this again. So he brings his arms around her, too. He cries with her but he doesn't know what to say.

"It's not your fault, 'Kane." His voice is hoarse. He doesn't want to let go.

Now it's his turn to hesitate. This has to end sooner or later; she's married, with a daughter, and dammit, he won't ruin her new life with his disruptive presence.

He waits a beat, then steps back. He wipes the tears off her face.

"I love you, too, 'Kane. More than you'll ever know." He turns around. He takes the first painful step away from her.

And he doesn't look back.

* * *

 **notes 2:** Eeep. End dialogue lifted directly from the movie. It was just so saaaad. I kept it intentionally vague but idea is Ranma went off to some adventure, some accident happened, and he was proclaimed dead since no one can find him. But he's still alive! And here you go.

Anyway, I am _rusty_. This is another practice exercise for me. Ranma and Akane are actually my first ever OTP and I was a bit disappointed with the manga's ending. But I am glad that Rumiko Takahashi said that they were meant to be together. And that's all that matters.


	2. Rise

RISE

 **summary** : Akane deals with the aftermath of Jusendo.

 **based on:** Very loosely based on the first part of Castle season 4, mainly Kate Beckett's PTSD.

 **notes** : Akane experienced a lot during the Saffron arc, and I think it would have affected her somehow. Right?

 **disclaimer** : I own nothing.

* * *

Akane Tendo wakes up in a cold sweat. Her heartbeat's pounding in her ears and she unconsciously rubs her chest. She remembers the feeling of drowning. But not on the beach or the school pool; this is different. There is some magic involved, draining her of her very essence.

She pushes her blankets off her, doing some breathing exercises to calm down. It's been two months since the nightmares started. Two months since Jusendo. Two months since the failed wedding, as well.

"Argh." Akane drops her head in her hands. "Think happy thoughts, think happy thoughts!"

She lightly toys with the idea of raiding her dad's medicine cabinet and taking some of his sleeping pills. God knows she needs the rest. Her grades have been slipping - it's been harder to concentrate in class with little sleep - and she'd rather not have Ms. Hinako do another house visit.

So she settles for a glass of milk instead. _Cold_ milk. Might burn down the house if she tries to use the stove.

"Akane?"

She looks up from her glass to her startled fiance. "Ranma. What are you doing up?"

"Couldn't sleep." The pig-tailed martial artist shrugs. "What brings you down here?"

"Same." She watches Ranma pour himself a glass of milk as well, settling beside her on the counter.

"You look tired, 'Kane." Ranma's eyes are boring into hers, and she looks away.

 _Not this again,_ she inwardly groans. Ranma has been quite inquisitive when it comes to her, as of late. She doesn't mind that extra attention and she's always acknowledged that he's overprotective of her but this...she feels that this is a battle she must face alone. "It's nothing."

"You sure?"

"Yes. Yes, I'm sure." It comes out a lot sharper than she intended, and hurt flashes briefly across Ranma's face. So she backtracks. "It's just...mid-term examinations are coming up and I'm feeling antsy. We haven't fully caught up with our lessons." A little white lie.

 _It would appear that you are his weakness_. Kiima's words ring in her head. She doesn't want to be weak in front of her fiance. That's what she uses to justify her lies to Ranma. Her numerous kidnappings are embarrassing enough; she doesn't need to add 'nightmares' to the long list of the Why-Akane-is-Worse-than-Ranma's-Other-Fiances List. Ukyo or Shampoo probably wouldn't cower over some bad dreams. Well, neither would she.

A warm hand touches hers. "Akane...you know you can tell me anything, right?" Ranma gently squeezes her hand and returns to his room. She's too surprised to respond.

* * *

They walk to school in the morning. Everything is peaceful until -

"Nihao! Ranma go on date with Shampoo, yes?" An Amazon blessed with a great body has glomped on to Ranma and Akane tries very, _very_ hard to control her temper. Ranma's struggling out of Shampoo's expert grasp.

"I'll see you at school, Ranma."

They hear the flap of wings of a flock of birds above them.

Akane drops to the pavement with a gasp, eyes wildly searching the sky. The fear in them is evident.

"What wrong with pervert girl?"

* * *

Kasumi, bless her motherly heart, brings the Tendo and Saotome families on a weekend trip to the beach. It's a welcome break from all the chaos in Nerima.

Ranma, in a cute little one-piece, has already run to the water and is enjoying the cool waves. Nabiki pulls on her younger sister's arm, urging her to drop her bags and go for a swim. "Just on the shallow side," she qualifies. Akane laughs and follows her sister to the water. As the water reaches her knees, she freezes.

She doesn't see the ocean. She sees the murky water of the Jusenkyo spring, a pair of hands holding her down.

 _Cold. Cold and hot at the same time. Her lungs were filling with water, her chest tight. She was drowning then burning, and there was nothing she can do about it. She's back in the Jusendo and she's going to die._

"Akane?" A voice reaches her through the haze. She dimly realizes that she's breathing heavily. "Akane, you're shaking." She looks down on her hands - yes, she's shaking and no, she can't stop. She focuses instead on the voice, tearing her thoughts away from the nightmare in her mind. It's Ranma. Ranma-chan.

"Akane." Ranma's brows are furrowed; she's worried. She doesn't like it when Ranma worries.

"I think I'll stay on our blanket for a while," she says, after she's calmed down a bit. Ranma doesn't leave her side for the rest of the weekend.

* * *

The girls are playing baseball today. It's a little too hot outside but Akane doesn't mind. She's always loved baseball.

"Tendo, it's your turn!" Her gym teacher calls. Akane picks up her bat and gives a few test swings. Sweat drips down her temples. She hits the ball and it flies in a wide arc. It's a home run!

Akane runs but everything suddenly feels as if it's in slow motion. The heat is pressing down on her, entering her lungs as she breathes. _Hot_. She stumbles and hits the ground. _It's too hot. It's too hot._

She is a little doll again, burning inside. She's trying to call out for water but no one can hear her.

"Sensei! Sensei!" Akane's classmates are in a panic. She's curled into a fetal position and is hyperventilating.

"Akane." Ranma. He's picked her up and now Akane is staring at the too blue sky.

* * *

Ranma is clenching his jaw, staring at his fiance pacing around her room in the infirmary. "We need to talk about this, 'Kane. I've ignored this long enough."

"No, you don't understand! I need to be okay!"

"It's not always a choice, Akane. I read up, what you're going through, they're classic symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder."

Akane snorts and turns away from him, folding her arms under her chest. "I don't have PTSD."

"You were drowned in a Jusenkyo spring. Then dehydrated into a doll, threatened by Shampoo and nearly burned by Saffron's fire. And you _almost died_. There are going to be issues."

"Okay, fine! I'll deal with them. Right now I need to figure out how to make _this_ ," she waves her hand vaguely, "Stop." She faces Ranma again, defiance in her gaze.

"It's not going to _just_ stop." Ranma's face softens and he inches towards her. Akane takes a step back.

"I don't need you solving every problem in my life, Ranma." She tries to fight back the tears building in her eyes. " _I'm fine_." She forces herself to take a deep breath and sits back down on the bed.

"You're not fine. You're just trying to act like you are. You're spinning out of control, losing your ability to cope," Ranma hesitates before wrapping his arms around his fiancee. "You don't have to face this alone."

Akane's breath hitches and the dam breaks loose. She reciprocates Ranma's hug and sobs into his shirt. He hold her tighter and kisses the top of her head. There are tears in his eyes, too.

"It's okay, Akane. It's gonna be okay."

* * *

 **notes 2:** I know nothing about PTSD so please forgive. *cries* I've read a lot of stories with Ranma having a lot of nightmares about the Saffron incident. I think Akane would have been greatly affected by it as well.


	3. Like I'm Gonna Lose You

**based on:** Nothing.

 **disclaimer** : I own nothing.

* * *

It's been a week since Ranma left with his father to go to Hokkaido, after seeing some news clips about a "monster" spotted flying around the area. Said monster suspiciously looks like Pantyhose Taro and it seems like his obsession with finding Happosai still hasn't waned. The good thing about the whole situation is that Happosai was reported to be terrorizing the north of Japan, so Nerima gets a good break from the chaos caused by his panty raids and the destruction from Taro's attacks.

The bad thing is that as soon as they heard the news, Genma and Soun decided that it was Ranma's duty as a martial artist to protect the weak and abused from the evil clutches of their old master. Even though if said weak and abused lay miles north of Tokyo. Ranma, with all his honor, took their fathers up on their offer. Of course, not before he was able to beat up - ehem, convince - Genma to go with him.

Akane thinks back on the little moment of selfishness she had before Ranma left. "Do you really have to go?" she asks, helping him fix his pack.

"Heh. You know I'm the only one strong enough to beat the crap out of Happosai and Pantyhose," he smirks.

"When we ha - I mean, when you have kids, will you still be willing to drop everything and leave your family for the sake of a martial artist's duty?"

Her question is met with silence. Ranma stills his packing efforts and looks at Akane, her head bowed and hands on her lap.

"Akane." When she doesn't look up, Ranma cups her face with his hands and brings it up so their gazes meet. Her brown eyes are wide and her cheeks colored slightly pink. "I'll always come back. I promise." A hint of a smile appears on her face. He adds, "Besides no one can beat Ranma Saotome." Akane promptly frowns and slaps her fiance at the back of the head, berating him for his huge ego.

She doesn't know when she started worrying for her fiance. Maybe it started during the skating match with Asuza and Mikado, after their Goodbye Whirl. She remembers the nervous _thump-thump-thump_ of her heart as Ranma lay motionless on the ice. Or maybe during the moxibustion incident? She admits - if only to herself - that she was scared her father would cut off the engagement. Martial arts was all that Ranma knew. If he was weak, what else would he do?

By the time Herb came around, Akane's incessant nail-biting had returned. Seeing the news clip of Horaisan crumbling to the ground nearly gave her a heart attack. And let's not talk about Saffron.

Akane has already accepted the fact that she will always worry about the safety of her fiance. Doesn't mean she fully agrees with Ranma subjecting himself to every danger life presents. He's a martial artist but doesn't mean he can just throw his life away. One of her greatest fears is one day, Ranma's ego will get the better of him and cause him to lose a match.

Ranma has become a constant presence in her life that it's hard to imagine a life without him. Sure, she still protested against the engagement but it's more form than substance. Ranma does the same but deep down, both teenagers have acknowledged that they would build a future - and family - together. There are words unsaid, but it will come, in time. The quiet moments together, soft touches here and there - that's enough, for now. They love each other. Just because they don't say it to each other doesn't make it any less true.

"Your constant sighing is distracting me from my favorite show," an annoyed Nabiki clips at her. Akane gives her sister a stern look and stomps up to her room. All this worrying is giving her a headache - turning in early might help.

* * *

It's the cold that wakes her up. Her window is wide open, letting the night breeze in. Akane blinks the sleep out of her eyes and realizes that she's now tucked firmly under her blanket.

But more importantly, there's now a warm body beside her. She shoots up and hisses, "Ranma! What are you doing here? This isn't allowed!" Akane tries to shove Ranma off her bed but he doesn't budge.

"Go back to sleep, tomboy," her pig-tailed fiance yawns.

Akane crosses her arms and gives him a nasty side-eye. "You could have woken me up, at least."

He responds by tugging her arm until she lies back down. Akane rearranges the blanket on top of them, and scrutinizes the face of her fiance. There are a few bruises here and there, but it doesn't seem serious. She'll have to check the rest of him tomorrow. She sighs and snuggles closer to him.

"I missed you, you dummy," she whispers.

"I missed you, too, tomboy," Ranma replies, wrapping his arms around her.

* * *

notes: Ehh wasn't sure how to end this so it turned out rushed and not so full of feelings.


	4. Edge of Tomorrow

**based on:** Edge of Tomorrow

 **notes** : I loved the movie. To fully understand this drabble, you may need to have watched Edge of Tomorrow. Or at least read the summary. Or be familiar with the premise of the movie.

 **disclaimer** : I own nothing.

* * *

 **Day 047**

"Find me when you wake up."

"What?"

She throws her metal mallet to the ground. "Come find me when you wake up."

The dropship explodes.

* * *

 **Day 048**

Ranma starts. Or restarts - that would be more accurate. He's relived this morning so many times but he never fails to get drawn to the larger than life image of Akane Tendo.

 _Come find me when you wake up._

He tears his gaze away from the woman who just might bring back order and logic in his life and tries to come up with ideas to get to the most powerful soldier in the world right now.

He goes through the motions, gets killed a couple more times, until finally -

"Yes? Who said you could talk to me?" She looks even better in person, despite her obvious annoyance at him. Ranma can't help but stare. Without her armor and weapon, she is tiny. Beautiful, but tiny all the same.

"Uhh…"

"Is there something on my face?" Her sharp tone brings him back to his senses.

"You did. At the beach. Tomorrow." The anger on Akane's face melts away, slowly being replaced by something akin to recognition. Her eyes express it all. "You know what's happening to me."

* * *

 **Day 063**

Akane teaches Ranma the rules of the game, which basically is to live, die, and repeat everything until they kill the Omega. He appreciates the view, at first; he's never had a teacher as hot as Akane Tendo and he admires her fierce determination to bring him to her level of combat.

But after a few broken spines and many shootings in the face, well. This may be the first time Ranma Saotome gives up on something.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait! Stop, wait a second," Ranma waves his arms, out of breath." I've been thinking… I mean, this thing in my blood. So maybe there's some way I can transfer it to you."

"I've tried everything, it doesn't work."

"Have you tried, you know… tried _**all**_ the options?" He gestures towards the lower half of his body.

"Oh, you mean sex? I tried it."

Ranma cocks his eyebrow at her. "How many times?"

Akane stares, stony-faced at him, and then, "PERVERT!" she yells, simultaneously shooting him on the head.

Ranma restarts. "Uncute tomboy," he mutters under his breath.

* * *

 **Day 097**

He starts to memorize her quirks. Her facial expressions, her movements. He knows what's gonna happen next when she stares a little too long at him, biting her lip, right hand twitching (she's gonna reach for her gun and shoot).

She starts asking if she can shoot him to restart. He's surprised the first time she does this - he didn't think she'd feel any remorse over his life. He can't feel anything but his face (broken spine, again) so he croaks a 'yes'.

Those moments are rare now; most of the time he's killed by a mimic on the battlefield. But not before he sees the life bleed out of her. This is what he sees everyday.

* * *

 **Day 132**

He starts to see his ability as a curse. The only consolation he has is at least she dies holding his hand.

* * *

 **Day 203**

He wraps the bandage around her wrist. "You're quite clumsy as a soldier." He squeezes her hand then lets go.

"How long has it been?" she asks.

A slight movement registers at the corner of his eye. He's getting good at spotting things but knows it won't delay the inevitable. He turns back and looks at her. "I think I'm falling in love with you."

The farmhouse explodes before she can respond.

* * *

 **Day 245**

"We can't do this alone."

"I told you, the last time I asked for help I was withdrawn from the battlefield, strapped down, and given sedatives enough for a whole battalion." Akane paces around the lab, biting her lip. A lock of hair is stuck to her cheek and he is tempted to touch her and brush it away.

"I can ask help from my squad."

She snorts. "I thought they were a bunch of misfits with toiletries for names."

* * *

 **Day 306**

There are unshed tears on her eyes when she realizes he's lost the ability. There is no going back.

* * *

 **Day 307**

They watch Shampoo detonate her last grenade, bringing the last two Mimics down with her. "We need to move," Akane pushes him, and he nods.

They jump down a gaping hole, reaching the basement of the museum. Two more levels. They continue to jump another level down, with Ranma catching Akane as she slips.

"Thanks," she pats his arm. "Still have the ammo?"

"Yeah, come on." They wade across the basement, finding another way to go deeper.

A chill runs down his spine. In just over a hundred meters is a telltale glow coming from another hole in the ground. The Omega. He wants to laugh; they are close to the end. Close to saving humanity.

"Together, alright?" he smiles.

"Ranma." He turns around, and the smile disappears. A Mimic stands quietly across the basement, waiting for their next move.

The girl loads her gun. "When I fire, you need to start running toward the Omega as fast as you can."

"What?"

"This is our last chance and I'm a better soldier than you; I'll be able to delay the Mimic long enough for you to detonate the bombs and kill the Omega. You might actually have a chance to survive."

No. No, no, no. At the very least, she was supposed to have survived this whole ordeal.

"Don't look so devastated. Aren't you used to this?" She gives him a small smile. No, he isn't used to this. He's used to waking up and seeing her. Again and again and again. He wishes that he has his ability again. He wishes he can reset time, just so he can see her face the next day.

"I know it's only been a day for me, but I feel like...I've fallen in love with you." She kisses him. And he kisses her back.

"When I fire, alright?"

"As fast as I can." He looks at her one last time.

The world explodes.

* * *

 **Day 001**

"Yes? What do you want?" She looks at him with suspicion, and he can't help but laugh. There is no better day to be alive. "Who said you could talk to me?

Ranma steps closer. "You did. At the beach. Tomorrow."

There are many tomorrows to come.

* * *

 **notes 2:** I am obviously rusty and this is obviously not my best effort.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far! 3 I know my stories aren't perfect but I'm glad I am able to entertain you even for a little while.


End file.
